San Francisco, CA. SEMICON West got started today, with the 2015 version taking place during the 50th anniversary of Moore’s Law. Denny McGuirk, president and CEO of SEMI, said at a press conference that in 1965 he was entering college and, of course, had no idea who Moore was. Things were different in 1965, McGuirk said. Gasoline was 31 cents a gallon, the Dow was under 1,000, and the price of a car was an outrageous $2,800. But although things were different then, he added, one thing remains the same: Moore’s Law is alive and well—despite frequent predictions over the last 10 or 20 years that the end is near.
Karen Savala, SEMI president, said 26,000 visitors are expected at SEMICON West, representing IDMs, foundries, OEMs, and OSATs. In the exhibit halls, 692 exhibitors, including 136 new exhibitors, are highlighting their products and services. Special programs are addressing topics including interconnect, the Internet of Things, MEMS, personal health devices, automotive applications, advanced processes, advanced materials, next-generation memory, and sustainable manufacturing. In addition, Freescale is presenting an “Internet of Tomorrow” display.
Savala concluded by citing “University Day” Thursday, which is intended to introduce students to the world of semiconductor manufacturing. The day will offer career networking and resume sharing and help SEMI member companies reach our to the future work force.
SEMI also released a forecast projecting three consecutive years of growth in worldwide semiconductor equipment sales. SEMI forecasts that the total semiconductor equipment market will grow 7% in 2015 (reaching $40.2 billion) and expand another 4% in 2016 to reach $41.8 billion.
Following strong growth of 18% in 2014, the equipment market is poised to continue to expand for the next two years. Key drivers for equipment spending are investments by memory and foundry fabs. Front-end wafer processing equipment is forecast to grow 10% in 2015 to $32.1 billion, up from $29.3 billion in 2014. Test equipment and assembly and packaging equipment are forecast to contract this year, falling to $3.5 billion (-3%) and $2.8 billion (-9%), respectively.
“Memory and foundry device manufacturers are continuing to invest in leading-edge process technologies to enable mobility and interconnectivity,” McGuirk. “We expect capital spending to post growth throughout the remainder of 2015 and into 2016.”
Taiwan is forecast to continue as the world’s largest spender with $10.9 billion estimated for 2015 and $10.0 billion for 2016. In 2015, South Korea is second at $8.6 billion, followed by North America at $6.5 billion. For 2016, these three regions are expected to maintain their relative rankings.
In 2015, year-over-year increases are expected to be largest for South Korea (25%), Taiwan (16%), Europe (14%), and Japan (13%). Projected year-over-year%age increases for 2016 are largest for Europe (26% increase), China (19%), South Korea (8%), and Rest of World (7%). Visit www.semi.org/en/MarketInfo for more.
